Through the years, man has unceasingly found ways to express their innate creativity and uniqueness. This is evident in many works of art collected throughout the years. However, such ingenuity is not only confined in crafts, sculptures, and paintings. Some people have literally made their own body as their canvas! These people are not only content of admiring art pieces; they made themselves the living and breathing artwork. This is mainly because some people find extreme satisfaction on being different from the rest or getting the kind of attention they unabashedly seek. Hence, this gave birth to the art of body modification.

The art of modifying the human body was already practiced centuries ago in native tribes as a way of making themselves look more attractive for their mate. It has taken a lot of form, such as body tattoo, piercing and interestingly body modification branding. The latter is unquestionably an extreme art form since it requires burning a part of the skin to create a permanent scar.

Body modification branding or otherwise known as scarification have earlier been used in burning identifying marks on livestock. Centuries ago. Greeks used it as a popular form of punishment for slaves and fugitives. Law offenders are branded on their forehead as a blatant sign of condemnation and to intentionally spur social disdain and disgrace. However, this barbaric act was later banned since it violates the human rights act and is deemed to be an extreme penalty to bear for most people.

Nowadays, body modification branding still exists in some sectors of society. No longer as a severe form of castigation but as a voluntary mark of association to a certain group. This practice is quite common in fraternities and organized crime groups. The scar apparently becomes their official membership mark of some sort. Some people use the body modification branding as a right of passage, especially for people who are aspiring to be a member of an exclusive group.

The body modification branding actually has two methods: the strike, where the artist will use a piece of metal to burn the skin repeatedly and the cautery, which uses a cautery pen to make a permanent scar on the skin. Both produce similar results and the scar is something the person will bear for the rest of his life. People who practice branding would claim it is a freestyle form of art, but a lot of people think otherwise. To the eyes of many, it is still a callous act that should no longer be practiced in this modern age.

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